After a year-long teaching residency at Clinton Avenue School coupled with an accelerated Master of Arts in Teaching program at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU), Hilbania Papazahariou will step into her own classroom this fall as an officially certified special education teacher at Fam ily Academy of Multilingual Exploration (FAME). Papazahariou was hired by New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) for the FAME teaching role on May 11. She is one of two dozen participants in the inaugural cohort of the Yale Teaching Fellowship — a partnership among Yale University, NHPS, SCSU, and New Haven Promise to help certify new teachers in the district’s highest shortage areas. In total, Yale has allocated $10 million to recruit four teaching-fellow cohorts with an aim of bringing 100 educators with master’s degrees to NHPS.  The inaugural cohort includes 23 fellows: 18 in the new-teachers track, two in the paraeducator/support staff track, and three in the current-teachers track. As of Wednesday, 16 Yale teaching fellows — including Papazahariou — have been officially hired by NHPS for the 2026-27 school year, with others still engaged in job interviews. Clinton Avenue’s second fellow, Lizmarie Maldonado, was hired by NHPS in April to teach special education at Fair Haven School next year. Papazahariou and Maldonado’s salaries will each start at $55,413. Next year, Clinton Avenue will again host two Yale teaching fellows. Click here to read more about changes coming to the program next year, including the extension of the SCSU master’s degree program from 12 months to two years. Since the start of the 2025-26 school year, fellows like Papazahariou were matched with current NHPS educators-turned-mentors at 14 city schools, where the student-teachers learned the ropes of what it’s like to actually be at the front of a classroom. Papazahariou landed at Clinton Avenue School. She said that the school has become her home away from home. She said school staff have celebrated her birthday and graduation, and even surprised her with a visit from her own parents during the year. Papazahariou said her experience at Clinton Avenue School helped inform her pick for the next place she’d thrive. NHPS’ hiring process allowed Papazahariou to rank her top school placements and interview their principals. She quickly learned through that process that FAME was the place to take her next career step because “the first time I visited Clinton Avenue I was greeted with hugs and so much love and it was the exact same at FAME which made it feel like home,” she told the Independent in a recent interview. At Clinton Avenue School, Papazahariou was matched with Elena Pradith, a K‑2 special education resource teacher and 23-year teaching veteran. Pradith is the school’s only K‑2 special education resource teacher. She typically works without a grade-level team. This year, while mentoring Papazahariou, Pradith picked up new teaching techniques and refreshing perspectives for education through their partnership. Papazahariou said that her experience with the Yale Teaching Fellowship has confirmed for her that teaching is her dream job. “Everyday is a new adventure,” she said. “I learned the most from the hardest and most challenging days and I never took any of them for granted.” Since stepping into the mentoring role, Pradith said she’s learned to be more reflective as an educator due to needing to slow down her thinking for Papazahariou and explain each classroom action. Throughout the year, when Papazahariou’s SCSU supervisor would visit their classroom to evaluate her learning, Pradith took away new and helpful teaching tips. During those progress-monitoring Mondays, Pradith recalled learning alongside Papazahariou to use a card labeled with a question mark on one side and a smile on the other for students. The card allows an educator to see who in their classroom needs additional help during lessons with just a simple flip of the card by the student. The duo also learned together to use a timer when offering individual help to students to be sure they are managing their time most effectively during class. “I’ve been doing this for so long it really helped to take time to slow down,” Pradith said. Pradith said she also learned from Papazahariou how to keep better boundaries to avoid work burnout. Papazahariou spent the year helping to teach Pradith to take her lunch and prep periods instead of always substituting for other responsibilities. Pradith also made sure to help Papazahariou build a schedule that allowed her to push into other classes beyond K-2 as a result of her teaching certification for special education being for K-12. “From staff at the front desk to the cafeteria, I’ve just been a nursery pot that’s being poured into so much,” Papazahariou said. She noted that she wouldn’t have been able to finish her SCSU program with a 4.0 GPA if Pradith hadn’t constantly helped her to complete video assignments for her course simulating classroom experiences. Papazahariou decorated her SCSU graduation stole with each of her 22 second graders’ painted hand prints. Papazahariou spent the year building her teaching tool kit, she said, from the first day of the year to the last. Her final lesson will be learning to clear out a classroom on the final day of school. “My biggest weakness, classroom management, is now my biggest strength,” Papazahariou said. See below for more stories about the inaugural year of the Yale Teaching Fellowship. Student-Teacher Focuses On Phonics Almost 1 Year In, Teaching Fellowship Adapts Student-Teacher Helps Class Read Between The Lines Conte Teacher Steps Up As Student — To Become A Special Ed Teacher, Too Student-Teachers, Teacher-Mentors Learn From Each Other Yale, City, SCSU Launch Teaching Fellowship Papazahariou (right) with her Clinton Avenue School teacher-mentor Elena Pradith. The post At School Year’s End, Yale Teaching Fellow Hired By NHPS appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less